Why Should Senior Citizens and the Health Care Community be Concerned?
The reasons senior citizens are prime targets for financial exploitation are clear. First, older citizens are most likely to have a “nest egg,” own their home, and/or have excellent credit, all of which the exploiters will try take advantage of. Also, individuals who grew up in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s, were generally raised to be polite and trusting. Two very important and positive personality traits, except when it comes to dealing with pushy agents or con-artists. The con-man will exploit these traits knowing that it is difficult or impossible for these individuals to say “no” or simply hang up the phone. Seniors are also less likely to report fraud because they don’t know who to report it to, are too ashamed at having been scammed, or do not know they have been scammed. In some cases, an elderly victim may not report the crime because he or she is concerned that relatives may come to the conclusion that the victim no longer has the mental capacity to take care of his or her own
